Liam Payne has revealed that his and Cheryl's relationship came about as a result of meddling from some friends – with those friends being none other than One Direction bandmate Niall Horan and music mogul Simon Cowell.

In an interview with Radio 1Xtra, Liam revealed that he never had a master plan in mind before he started dating Cheryl, saying: "It wasn't something I ever planned. I wish I could say I was that confident going in!"

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Nope, as it turns out, there was actually a fair bit of interference from others before the couple became official, and it was Niall and Simon who gave Liam the push he needed.

"I was saying something about Cheryl one night in Simon's house, and he was like, 'I think I know who is going to be the future Mrs Payne', and I was like 'Who are you on about?'

"He was like, 'I'm not telling you, you'll have to wait and see.' Apparently he really embarrassed her one day, being like, 'You know who really fancies you? Liam from One Direction.' And she left the room bright red."

The plan certainly worked, seeing as Liam and Cheryl welcomed their baby son Bear in March, and with that kind of success rate, Liam has no problem in recommending Niall and Simon for all your hook up needs.

"They played cupid," he said. "If you ever need anything hooking up, those are your boys."